TAKE ACTION.

On April 29th, another young black man was killed by racist police violence when 15-year-old Jordan Edwards was fatally shot in the back of the head by white Texas police officer Roy Oliver. In a rare win for justice, Mr. Oliver has been fired and charged with murder.

In a statement released on May 5th, Sherrilyn Ifill, President and Director-Counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund (LDF), called “on the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office to immediately release video footage of the shooting, as well as any incident reports that may implicate officers who attempted to cover up their colleague’s misconduct. Transparency and accountability are both essential to ensuring justice for Mr. Edwards and his family.”

We can boost that demand by contacting Dallas County District Attorney:

Speaking with Amy Goodman on Democracy Now! (transcript) regarding Edward’s murder, NAACP President and CEO Cornell Brooks said “This is a moment in our democracy where we have got to not only call for reform, but demand reform. That means not only lawyers in the courts pursuing charges, pursuing prosecution of bad police officers, but also means activists in the streets engaging in serious civil disobedience, serious disruption of business as usual, and literally bringing this system of police misconduct and brutality to a grinding halt."

To add your voice to the demand for reform, we suggest getting involved with your local chapter of Black Lives Matter.

TAKE CARE.

Get Woke About Black Lives in AmericaFor a better understand of how narratives about the "good negro" can be damaging, read this Teen Vogue article, (way to show up Teen Vogue). Then don't perpetuate them, and shut them down if you see them.

And then check out our 101 page for more basic resources about how not to be a racist jerk.

Check in With Your FriendsAnother senseless death like that of Jordan Edwards often leaves our friends in the black community with a sense of helplessness and terror. So be a good friend, and reach out to folks who may be struggling. Listen to them. Provide support. And then get back to work dismantling white supremacy.

These conversations are always so tense, so painful. People are defensive. We want to believe we are good. To face the racisms and prejudices we carry forces us to recognize the ways in which we are imperfect. We have to be willing to accept our imperfections and we have to be willing to accept the imperfections of others. Is that possible on the scale required for change?